Blood Ties
by RosalindHawkins
Summary: Sequel to Questioning. When Isogai's mother is on her deathbed, she tells him the truth about his parentage. In need of funds, the freshly orphaned high school student gets in touch with his obscenely rich biological father and asks for aid. What he actually gets is far more than he bargained for, and Isogai suddenly finds himself emerged in the upper echelons of a corporate world.
1. Have You Eaten Yet?

It was the summer after his first year of high school that Isogai's mother's health took a sharp turn for the worst. She'd always been sickly, so he'd always been helping her care for the house and his siblings, but suddenly she needed his help more than ever before. The inevitable had come, but he'd hoped he'd be able to delay this day by at least a few more years.

"I'm not going to be around much longer, Isogai," she weakly whispered to her eldest son one night, Isogai sitting at her bedside with wide, tired eyes.

"Don't talk like that!" He took her nearest hand and held it tightly, fighting off the urge to cry. "You need to stay positive. You're going to get better."

She didn't contradict him, but her sad smile didn't agree with him either.

"We both know what's going to happen, Isogai," she murmured. "And before that happens... there's something I need to tell you..."

"You should rest, save your strength," Isogai urged, but she shook her head.

"No, Isogai... this is important. There's something... I need you... to know..."

Isogai didn't protest again, but waited pensively for her to continue.

"I was never... completely honest... about your father..."

"My father?" His father had died about ten years ago. It had been an accident. What more to it was that?

"Your father is alive, Isogai..."

He gasped in shock, but she was far from done.

"My husband... was not your father..."

With one fell swoop, he crashed from his momentary sense of hope to a gut-wrenching sense of... loss? Betrayal?

"Then... Orihime and Hitoshi...?" he asked hesitantly, naming his younger siblings with a look of concern.

"They're your half-siblings." She paused to catch her breath, face probably flushed, but it was hard to tell in the glow of street-lights and starlight. "I'm sorry, Isogai..."

"It's okay, it doesn't matter." He rushed to reassure her. He didn't want hr to think that he was upset at her for this; it was what it was, the past couldn't be changed, and he loved her regardless. Her life hadn't been easy, but she'd always done right by him.

"Isogai... when I die... I want you to find your father... and ask him for help."

Isogai wanted to speak, but his tongue felt heavy and his mouth was dry.

"He's a Korean... businessman. He has more... than enough... to support you... when I'm gone."

"Don't _talk_ like that," he pleaded, starting to tear up as he pressed her hand to his cheek. "You're not going to..."

"In the bottom drawer... of my dresser," she continued, disregarding his protests. "You'll find a black box... with a keepsake that will prove... I sent you."

"Mom..." A single tear slid down the side of Isogai's face. He hated it when she spoke about what he should do after she passed on.

"Promise me... that you'll ask him... for help... I need to know that... you will."

"I-I promise," he stammered, then moved her hand from his cheek so he could kiss her knuckles.

"You were always such a good son," she sighed wearily, closing her eyes. She sounded tired, but she was smiling.

Isogai shifted closer to her said, gently holding her hand as he tried to push back the urge to cry.

"What's his name, Mom?"

"Hm?"

"My... real father. What's his name?"

"His name... is Mr. Han."

* * *

Isogai sat by his mother all night, but she was dead by morning.

He didn't really have time to grieve for himself, there was too much to do. He had to call the coroner's office and soothe his little siblings, then start cleaning the parts of the house that had been neglected ever since her health had taken a bad turn. He exchanged a few phone calls with the coroner's office and didn't realize what time it was until Meg called. She'd been calling him every day for a while now, sometimes coming over when he needed her help with his siblings. They liked her well enough, and it was good for them to get out of the house for awhile and escape the scent of encroaching death.

Isogai was scrubbing the shower clean, the scent of bleach tickling his nose when his phone started vibrating in his pocket. He sat back on his heels and removed his rubber gloves before he pulled it out of his pocket. The name on the screen sent a shiver of relief through him.

"Hello?"

"Isogai, how are doing? How's your mom?"

Uncomfortable silence.

"She's gone, Meg," he whispered, and she almost didn't hear him.

"I'm coming over, then, and I'm bringing dinner. You haven't started cooking yet, have you?"

"Ah, no, I forgot..."

"Okay, then, I'll be there in an hour. I'll bring groceries with me and just cook there."

"You don't have to—"

"Isogai."

"Yes?"

"I'm doing this because I care. Let me help you."

"... Okay. Thanks, Meg."

"You're welcome."

Isogai always liked the way her voice sounded when she was smiling.

* * *

Meg was a huge help in the next couple of weeks while Isogai dealt with the funeral arrangements and the paperwork and all the complications that accompanied the death of a parent. Meanwhile, Meg comforted the younger kids and kept them occupied, letting Isogai continue to work his day job while still compulsively cleaning and organizing the house.

He slept little, never stopping to grieve and forgetting to communicate with any of their other friends. Meg got in touch with Nagisa, Rio, Sugina, and the others, though, telling them what had happened and asking for their support.

When the well-wishes, the flowers, the babysitting offers, the condolence cards, and the pre-made casseroles started rolling in, Isogai was shocked and touched. It wasn't until that night, after Meg had put his brother and sister—half-brother and half-sister—to bed, that he finally had a chance to feel his own grief.

"This is so nice of them," Isogai murmured to himself as he stared into the fridge at the food he'd been given, then turned to look at the cards and flowers cluttering the counter space of his small kitchen. It was _his_ now, because he now owned the house.

He owned a house.

"Even though we've gone separate ways, class 3-E will always stick together," Meg said as she entered the kitchen. She looked a little tired, but not nearly as tired as her boyfriend looked.

"You did this, didn't you?" he asked, a cautious half-smile on his face.

"It's the least I could do." She approached him and tucked her arms around his torso, laying her head on his shoulder as he hugged her in return. She could feel him relax in her arms, and she gave him a brief squeeze.

"You've already helped so much... I don't know how I could ever thank you enough." Isogai leaned back slightly so that he leaning on the closed door of the fridge, eyes closed.

"You taking care of yourself is thanks enough." She straightened up and pecked his cheek. "Speaking of which, have you eaten dinner yet?"

"Ah, not yet." He looked a little embarrassed, but Meg wasn't surprised.

"I'll heat something up for you, then."

Isogai didn't even have the energy to make conversation, so he buried his head in his arms on the kitchen table while she plated his dinner, microwaved it to a decent temperature, then placed it in front of him with a pair of chopsticks. She kissed the top of his head and sat next to him, waiting for him to start eating. He was motionless for a few moments before she lay her hand on his upper back.

"Isogai, are you still awake?"

"Hm?" He sat up slowly, looking quite sleepy, and she realized that he _hadn't_ been awake.

"I thought you might have dozed off." She gave him a sympathetic look, one that bordered on pity. "You really should ask for a few days off. Just let yourself take a break, get some rest"—she smoothed his crooked bangs back, away from his forehead—"let yourself grieve."

Upon hearing the word "grieve" Isogai stiffened a little, the hesitant smile on his face fading immediately. He looked away from Meg and at his food instead. She hesitated slightly before reaching for his hand. He turned his over so that he could hold hers and rub his thumb across the back of her hand. Meg couldn't measure how long they were simply quiet together, the plate of food steaming as it gradually cooled.

"I was trying to stay awake with her that night," Isogai murmured, staring at the old table. Meg's breath caught in her throat, but she didn't interrupt. "I meant to stay awake, but I fell asleep holding her hand... I was only asleep for a couple hours before I woke up, but... it was too late." The tears started to flow, and Meg tugged on Isogai's hand, leading him to the couch where she could hold him properly as he cried. Once the tears started, they began to flow freely, the dam broken by Meg's kindness.

She didn't interrupt him, didn't tell him to stop, just held him in his moments of weakness so that he could be allowed to _feel_ the loss he'd suffered.


	2. Has Anyone Heard From V?

**A/N: Since this is a sequel to "Questioning" this is also a crossover with _Yu-Gi-Oh!_ in addition to _Assassination Classroom_ and _Mystic_ Messenger, I only marked it for the latter two because their universes and characters are the primary setting for the story in this fic. It will be a longer series where each of the protagonists (Jumin, Kaiba, and Isogai) takes a turn being the main character, so there will be a balance of involvement from each fandom/source. You don't need to know YGO well to appreciate Kaiba's presence in this story; just Google some pics and memes of him, and you're set.**

* * *

 **May 27, 17:28 ~ RFA Chatroom: "It's been six months"**

 **707** : But... has anyone heard from V?

 **ZEN** : No...

 **Yoosung** : It's already been 6 months.

 **ZEN** : Do you think something happened?

 **Yoosung** : I honestly don't even expect anything now.

 **ZEN** : Well...

 **ZEN** : I don't like it that we're not hearing from V, but I guess we'll just have to wait.

Jumin cringed as he skimmed the chatroom messages on his phone, wondering if he ought to contribute to the conversation.

 **707** : It's like he just walked off the face of the planet or something...

 **707** : omg

 **707** : Maybe he's in SPACE~

 **Jumin Han** : He might as well be.

 **Yoosung** : Huh? o_0

 **ZEN** : That's right, you're close friends with V

 **ZEN** : Have you heard from him Jumin?

 **Jumin Han** : We _were_ close

 **Yoosung** : How do you mean?

 **707** : What are you talking about, Jumin?

 **Jumin Han** : Nevermind. Forget I said anything.

 **ZEN** : Is there something you're not telling us?

 _Jumin Han has left the chatroom._

 **ZEN** : Damn

 **ZEN** : he's hiding something

 **ZEN** : that jerk

 **Yoosung** : Careful, Zen

 **Yoosung** : Remember what he did last time you insulted him?

 **ZEN** : Ugh! Don't remind me!

 **707** : Oh~ But you looked so cute wearing those cat-ears your fangirls sent you~

 **707** : wink emoji

 **ZEN** : -_-

 **ZEN** : I

 **ZEN** : hate

 **ZEN** : cats

 **ZEN** : so

 **ZEN** : much

* * *

It had already been six months, but to Jumin, it felt like an eternity.

A week after the RFA party, at which Jumin had announced his new leadership position while omitting V's planned absence, Jumin received a voicemail on his phone at an ungodly hour of the night, when there was no way he would be awake.

It was V's goodbye.

He'd gotten to die the way he wanted to, in obscurity and abiguity, and his memory faded the way he wanted it to: slowly, quietly fading from the lives of his friends. He wouldn't have called Jumin at all to say goodbye had he not recalled the pained look of betrayal on his friend's face and felt the need to explain himself one last time.

That voicemail, that missed call, marked Jumin's transition into the second stage of grief: anger.

He'd spent a week in denial, letting Kaiba dote on him while they ignored the world together in favor of each other's company.

Kaiba couldn't stay in South Korea forever, though, no matter how much Jumin wanted him to. Even when he wasn't there, he was still present: phone calls, text messages, emails, and facetime kept them connected. Jumin had finally tapped into his emotional reservoirs, just in time to fall in love and just in time to grieve.

He ranted, he raved, he wept.

Kaiba listened, understood, and comforted. He took everything in stride, and he stayed by Jumin's side, even when he was inconsolable.

Between trips to his space station, visits to foreign locations of his amusement parks, appearances hosting card game tournaments, promoting new products, meeting with any number of foreign and domestic business associates, Kaiba would steal a few hours to stop over in Seoul to meet with his lover, who'd become so thoroughly addicted to him that he even tried to intersect their paths when they were _both_ traveling.

It made Jumin feel restless to know that Kaiba was traveling so much for his work, constantly on the move, constantly pushing the boundaries of what modern technology was capable of. He wished that he could be the one going to _him_ more often, but Mr. Chairman kept too close an eye on him for him to be able to slip away without being found out or without being penalized with an extra work load.

At the same time, he didn't envy the jet-lag, exhaustion, and skewed internal clock that accompanied such frequent, varied travel.

It had taken months for Jumin's anger to subside, now he was just filled with regret. Whenever he found himself second-guessing his decisions—replaying their last conversation in his head a thousand times in a thousand different ways—Kaiba could always tell, and he could always pull Jumin out of his own mind when he most needed it.

Quite frankly, Jumin was amazed that Kaiba had stayed with him after all the crap he'd had to put up with as a result of Jumin's grief.

* * *

"Looks like we'll be able to have dinner after all."

"Hm?" Kaiba lifted his head from where he'd crashed on the couch in Jumin's office to catch an hour of sleep.

"That was my father on the phone. He cancelled on me—again." Jumin sighed and pressed his fingers into his temples as he closed his eyes against a growing headache. "This is par for the course with him, but still..." He heard the shift of fabric as Kaiba rose from the couch, but was surprised when a pair of familiar lips pressed to his cheek.

"Do you want to just go home, then?" the brunette murmured against his skin, kissed him again and drew back. "Or do you still want to go out?"

"Practically speaking, it makes sense to still go out," Jumin mused aloud, eyes still closed. "It would be suspicious if we simply went back to my apartment together."

"True." Kaiba leaned against the edge of Jumin's desk and combed back Jumin's hair with his fingers, letting both hands rest on the back of his head.

Jumin opened his eyes, his expression relaxing a little. He leaned in to steal a kiss, placing a hand on Seto's cheek and only pulling away a couple inches to study his face.

"You haven't been sleeping well." Jumin brushed his thumb under Seto's eye, noting the dark semi-circles hidden under a thin layer of expensive concealer. Kaiba's vanity was a natural biproduct of his ego, manifesting itself in his metrosexual tendencies.

"I've been busy. You know how it is." Seto pushed aside Jumin's bangs to kiss his forehead, then leaned back, forcing Jumin to drop his hand.

"How's the Ryūjin Project coming along?" Jumin leaned back in his chair, interlocking his fingers and cradling the back of his head.

"We encountered complications." Kaiba's frustration changed his tone. "The latest prototype proved to be unsustainable, so we'll have to go back to the original coding and make further alterations."

The Ryūjin Project was one of two current KaibaCorp projects in R&D that were absolutely confidential. Not even Jumin really knew what it was about, though he'd started forming a vague notion that it involved some kind of genetic engineering. The other top secret project was called Kronos, and Jumin knew even less about that one. All he knew about Kronos was that _it_ was the primary reason Kaiba made so many trips to his space station.

"Is that the project that aims to discover the key to immortality?" Jumin joked with a slight twitch of his lips.

"No." Kaiba looked amused instead of frustrated now. Every now and then Jumin would try to guess what his favorite projects—Ryūjin and Kronos—concerned, and his guesses were always absurdly grandiose and improbable. "But I do plan to get started on that project in 2025."

"Are you being serious?"

"No."

"You're such a tease."

"Do you really want to know what it's about?" Seto was being serious now, making an offer that he hadn't made before.

"Yes."

"Hm. Maybe I'll show you when we've finally produced a successful prototype."

Jumin rolled his eyes and dropped his hands back to the keyboard of his computer. "It doesn't have to be perfect for it to be impressive," he remarked as he began responding to a critical email he'd just received.

"It's one of those impossible things that people will refuse to believe until I _have_ succeeded," Seto replied slowly. "Until then, it's just a pipe dream."

"Go back to sleep, Seto. I'll wake you when it's time to leave."

The brunette nodded and tousled Jumin's hair briefly before returning to the couch and laying across it, a throw pillow over his eyes to block out the light.

* * *

"Your father's arrived," Kaiba murmured behind his wine glass, watching Mr. Chairman and his guest being seated at their table across the restaurant. Jumin had his back to them, so he was relying on Kaiba's observations to inform him of what his father was up to.

"I'd bet you a small fortune right now that he's with a woman." Jumin's bitter murmur was greeted with an amused chuckle from his partner.

"You'd lose that bet, but I won't hold you to it."

Jumin gave him an odd look.

"You really think you're richer than me, don't you you?"

"When you compare our assets, I'm the only one of us who owns a space station." Kaiba lips twitched into a smirk.

"Your _company_ owns the space station," Jumin corrected with a scowl. "Not you."

"But I own the company, so I also own it by extension."

"I don't see why it matters which of you two is richer, when you're both so vastly affluent," Jaehee grumbled from her reluctant position at the table as the third wheel. They brought her along to most of their public dinners and dates for the purpose of avoiding suspicion, the two of them always footing the bill. Once, Jaehee protested that she didn't have anything formal enough to wear to the opera; Jumin responded with a five-hundred dollar check so that she could buy something appropriate. After that, she never complained again, and Jumin, who insisted in the name of good taste that she never wear the same dress twice, habitually funded her formal-wear.

"If it's not a woman, then who is he?" Jumin asked, returning to the matter at hand before taking another bite of his entree.

"He's young, in his teens, anywhere from… fifteen to eighteen, I'd guess."

"That looks about right," Jaehee agreed. It wasn't her business, but she couldn't ignore the nudge of curiosity.

"He's native Japanese," Kaiba continued, watching the young man in his peripheral vision.

"How can you tell?" Jumin's skepticism was instinctive, though he should know by now not to doubt his lover about anything.

"Coloring, mannerisms." He waved a hand indifferently. "Besides, they're speaking Japanese, so he's either ill-adept at Korean, or they're trying to prevent anyone from understanding them."

"Or both."

"Or both," Kaiba agreed.

"What would Mr. Chairman be doing with a teenager?" Jaehee asked as she sifted her salad, looking quite puzzled.

"Hell if I know," Jumin grumbled, looking more sour than before.

"Give me a few more minutes, and I could probably tell you more."

"Be my guest." Jumin let Kaiba do his deducing and observing, turning to Jaehee to strike up a conversation about something on the news.

There was a time when Seto Kaiba had been obtuse on the matters of human behavior and relations; some time in his early twenties he'd become aware of this deficit and, having set out to remedy the situation, was now more skilled at reading people than the average man.

So when the young man sitting opposite Chairman Han took three sips from his water glass in as many minutes, and hesitated slightly the first time he reached for his silverware, and changed where he was resting his hands four separate times, it was clear to Kaiba that he was nervous. No laughter emanated from their table at any point, nor did the youth's few smiles seem sincere. Cunning, charming, perhaps, but not happy. Then he reached into the inside pocket of his suit jacket—the garment probably new and the only one he owned—and withdrew a plain, unsealed envelope. He placed it on the table as he spoke, eyes shining but serious, tapped it with his finger, then slid it across the table to the chairman. He stood from the table with a slight nod of respect, setting his cloth napkin on the seat of his chair before leaving the table to walk towards the restroom.

Kaiba's curiosity was piqued, so after a minute of quiet thought, he, in the name of research, excused himself from the table.

* * *

Isogia took a few deep breaths to steady his nerves as he washed his hands, forcing his mind to remain clear.

 _"Remember to smile," Meg had told him as she touched his cheek, a gentle look in her eyes. "Stay on your guard, be safe, and don't forget to call me when you land." She was standing close to him, fidgeting with the collar of his shirt as they waited at the bus-stop together._

 _"I won't," he'd promised before their goodbye kiss. "Thank you again for taking care of the little ones for me. If they give you any trouble, let me know."_

Caught up in memories of Meg, Isogai hadn't noticed someone entering the bathroom as he dried his hands. He dropped the used hand towel into the proper basket (he'd never before been to a restaurant that had cloth towels in the bathroom for drying your hands, and he was quite amazed by it), flicked his new blue tie—a royal silk affair, a present from Meg as they'd prepared him for this trip—over his should so that it rested on his chest once more, and turned to leave, accidentally bumping into the tall brunette who'd just entered.

"Pardon me, sir," Isogai apologized in his weak Korean. He side-stepped and passed him, hand reaching for the door when a voice stopped him.

"What's a kid like you doing carrying a knife this big?"

Isogai froze for a moment before he turned around. There the brunette stood with Isogai's switchblade in hand, looking vaguely smug and superior, but Isogai couldn't read anything else but wealth from his appearance. He did take a quick inventory of his appearance, though: vivid blue eyes, cleanshaven, broad shoulders, relatively young, but past college age. Fluent, if not native, in Japanese, as his question proved.

"I like to be prepared." Isogai kept himself calm as he turned around and extended a hand, palm facing upward as he held the other's arrogant azure gaze. "I would appreciate it if you gave that back to me."

"Before I do that, I'd like you to answer a question for me." He flicked out the blade and examined it closely. "What business do you have with Chairman Han?"

Isogai could feel his spine stiffen, his instincts preparing him to go on the defensive if he needed to. He narrowed his eyes slightly and replied with clipped, polite words: "I mean no offense, sir, but that's a private matter between he and I. It's none of your business."

"A private matter, hm?" The man concealed the blade, seeming satisfied with its well-kept state. "Business or pleasure?"

"If I tell you, will you give it back?" Isogai asked anxiously. He didn't like being unarmed, and he liked it even less when a stranger was in possession of his weapon. Korosensei may have died, but his teachings and training hadn't left his pupils.

"Sure." Something about that casual smirk made Isogai reluctant to trust him.

"Business."

The weight of the switchblade in his palm was comforting as the knife was returned to the teenager.

"It's just as well that you're dealing with him in business." The smirk slipped into something more serious. "He tends to screw people over in his private life, so be sure that you know what you're doing."

The brunette turned away, so Isogai did too, concealing his knife in his pocket as he exited the bathroom, puzzled by the whole exchange.

 _What on earth was that about?_


	3. The Man Named Kaiba

**A/N: I apologize in advance for how grumpy Jumin is in this chapter and the previous one, but it'll be explained, and he won't be like this for the rest of the story. Assume all the characters are speaking Japanese unless otherwise specified. Underlined dialogue is English. Bold dialogue is Korean.**

* * *

"So, what's your full opinion of him?" Jumin asked as Seto rejoined them at the table. "You've had more than enough time to come up with something."

"He's plebeian, a high school student from the _ prefecture, based on his accent. Middle to lower class. Polite enough to pass for more than he probably is. Cautious by nature, ambitious based on his presence _here_." Kaiba paused thoughtfully as he glanced over Jumin's shoulder at the teen across the room. "He knows he's good looking, probably has a girlfriend—"

"How can you know that?" Jaehee interjected skeptically.

"No teenage boy dresses that well without the help of either a woman or a professional," Kaiba pointed out, satisfying her. "He's here on business, or so he says," he continued.

"What kind of business?" Jumin's silver eyes shone with a peculiar greed. Jaehee rolled her eyes as she suppressed the urge to interrupt again by taking another sip of her white wine.

"You really want my honest estimate?"

Jumin nodded.

Kaiba flicked his eyes once more between Jumin and the small figure of the teenager over his shoulder.

"Blackmail."

"What makes you say that?"

"Intuition."

"You don't believe in intuition."

"I believe in _my_ intuition."

"You're impossible, you know that?"

Kaiba gave Jumin a dazzling smile, the one that made Jumin's face flush and ears grow hot.

"You know you love me for it."

Jumin didn't have an immediate answer to that, so he took an angry bite of steak instead.

"If you wish to observe them longer," Jaehee interrupted cautiously. "We could order dessert."

"Capital idea, Ms. Kang," Seto praised, his eyes still fixed on Jumin. This evening's game of surveillance had started out of spite, but now Jumin was more invested in this than he'd ever meant to become. Seto didn't mind, though: if Jumin was focused on this, then he wasn't fixated on his friend's death.

* * *

"I think my demands are fairly reasonable as they stand, sir," Isogai said as politely as he could manage. Haggling with Chairman Han was more difficult and more frustrating than Karma's coaching had prepared him for. Rather, Isogai hadn't been prepared to be spoken to with such derision and disregard. With every word out of his mouth, the chairman managed to belittle his illegitimate son as if he were trying to shrink him down to microscopic size so he could be flicked away like a fly. "If you continue to deny me your financial support, I _will_ go to the press with my story."

 _How do you think that would make your company look? Do you want the world to know that you're a stingy old man who won't share less than one percent of his yearly income with his orphaned, dirt-poor son?_ Isogai didn't like that he was having malicious thoughts about this man, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he deserved it on some level.

"My lawyer will need to look this over, of course. I know you wouldn't have experience with this, but that's _usually_ what people do before they sign contracts. I'll send you my revisions within a week."

"My flight home leaves tomorrow afternoon, sir." Isogai's voice was quickly losing its amiability, but he fought to maintain it as best he could. "I'd prefer if we could continue the negotiations in person."

"Then you'll just have to return here to do that, won't you?" Such snide arrogance made Isogai angry in a way that nothing else could.

"To be frank, sir, I can't _afford_ to do that." Isogai's tone was strained. He was barely managing to remain courteous.

"That's just too bad." Chairman Han was _trying_ to get the teenager riled up; he could see it in his smirk.

There was open hostility between them as they parted ways from the restaurant, Isogai feeling quit discouraged as he turned in the direction of his hotel. Was it worthwhile to pay for a cab in order to keep his suit in good condition, or was the weather fair enough for him to simply walk back to his hotel? He knew he could defend himself, but if it came to that, the suit might get damaged, and if he needed to meet with Chairman Han again, he would need to dress nicely again...

Frustrated with how their meeting had gone, Isogai took his phone out of his pocket as he turned in the direction of his hotel. He thumbed through his text conversation with Meg, his heart aching a little. He'd promised to call her and tell her how things had gone, but he didn't want to tell her just yet that he might have failed. Nothing was definitive after all, and there was still a chance that he'd persuade, threaten, or otherwise cajole the crotchety sugardaddy into signing a contract that would entitle Isogai to a modest annual stipend for the next five years—enough to cover living expenses and his siblings' tuition until Isogai would be able to fund those himself. The contract was necessary because it was legally binding, forcing him to comply with the agreement lest he try to back out of it, only to have Isogai bring the force of the law down on him.

There was always the threat of scandal, too, but for Isogai, that was a last resort. He didn't want to be a public figure, didn't want to be _associated_ with a public figure. He just wanted to live out the next few years in private with a solid sense of financial security while he was still in school, then he could receive an education and get a good job before Chairman Han's funding ended.

He was more than willing to take full responsibility for the care of his family, but he also needed help.

 _Mom, why did you have to leave this task to me?_

Isogai had both his hands in his pockets, fingering his cell phone as he walked towards his hotel. He'd catch a cab if it rained. Right now, he needed to think and he thought best when he was walking. With a sigh, he pulled out his phone, deciding to update Meg on his situation. She deserved to hear from him.

[Just left dinner. On my way back to the hotel. I'll call you tomorrow to talk about it.] He read the text, hesitated, then added, [How are the kids doing?] Send.

Isogai was in the act of tucking his cell back into his pocket when a heavy hand landed on his shoulder, startling him to a halt.

"I thought I told you to be careful." The voice was low, vaguely familiar, just above and behind him. Isogai looked at the stranger out of the corner of his eyes, but the stranger wasn't looking at him. "Did you even realize you were being followed?"

"No. By who?" Isogai kept his tone low too, looking up at the fluorescent skyscrapers of the city instead, glancing around at the nearest reflective surfaces in an attempt to see who was behind him.

"Chairman Han's henchmen." The stranger applied enough force to Isogai's shoulder to shove him towards the parked limo on the side of the street, the teenager too surprised to react and still unwilling to fight him when he had no definite evidence that this man meant him any harm. The door swung open, and with the short command, "Get in," Isogai obeyed. The brunette was right behind him, closing the door as he swung into the backseat, sitting across from isogai and next to a well-dressed woman with glasses and short brown hair.

Next to Isogai sat an irked businessman, someone that Isogai recognized from the research he'd done with Meg and Ritsu long before this trip.

Isogai was sitting next to Jumin Han, a person that he only recognized because he'd come up in his internet searches for Chairman Han.

Jumin gave Isogai an appraising look before turning to the brunette and asking, "What are you up to this time? Who is this?"

"This"—the brunette inclined his head in Isogai's direction—"is your father's dinner guest."

"So is this an abduction?" Jumin asked dryly, both eyebrows raised. "Because I don't think my insurance covers that."

"Doesn't matter if they do or not, so long as you're not the one who's driving." The brunette grinned at Jumin, who huffed and turned away to look out the window in irritation. The brunette returned his attention to Isogai. "What's your name?"

"What's yours?" he retorted without hesitation, making the quiet woman giggle.

"I like you." She offered Isogai a half-smile actually addressing him directly, unlike Jumin, who'd preferred to ignore him. "Someone needs to keep this one's ego in check every now and then, so don't hesitate to challenge him." She nodded in the direction of the brunette, who looked amused.

"I _am_ known to enjoy a challenge." He smirked, then lifted a hand to his chest in an introductory gesture. "I am Seto Kaiba, president and CEO of KaibaCorp." He dropped his hand and waited with a smirk for that information to sink in.

Kaiba.

Seto Kaiba.

KaibaCorp.

Isogai's eyes lit up with recognition, as Kaiba knew they would.

"I've heard of you. Your company pioneered holographic technology."

"Among other things, yes." His superior air of self-assurance seemed like it might quickly become irritating. "This is Jumin Han, a high-level executive at C&R International." He gestured in Jumin's direction, and the Korean man pointedly ignored them both. "And this is his chief assistant, Ms. Jaehee Kang."

"It's nice to meet you," she greeted, her Japanese heavily accented but clear enough for Isogai to understand without any trouble. She extended a hand to him with a warm smile, and he reciprocated. So far, Jaehee was his favorite person in the car.

"I apologize for this," Kaiba said, his expression turning from smug to serious. "But you were in imminent danger, so I trust you understand the necessity of the abduction."

"How could you tell?"

"I know a group of trained assassins when I see them," was his dark reply. Isogai was going to ask further questions when Jumin angrily snapped something at Kaiba in Korean, and Kaiba retorted with a similarly negative attitude. Jaehee rolled her eyes with a sigh as Isogai flicked his eyes between the two of them, trying to figure out what was going on. His eyes settled on Jumin as his half-brother looked at him for the first time.

"Who are you and why were you meeting with my father?" he demanded in English. Assuming that Jumin's Japanese was about as strong as Isogai's Korean, the teen responded in kind.

"My name is Isogai Yuuma. How do you know that—"

"We saw you at the restaurant," Jumin interrupted impatiently. "What business do you have with him?"

"With all due respect, sir, that's between Chairman Han and I." Isogai kept his tone reserved and respectful, still on guard in a car of strangers. Now that he thought about it, he didn't even know where they were going.

"Not anymore." That was Kaiba, speaking in English too now. Isogai wasn't used to juggling three languages in the same conversation but Kaiba seemed at ease with it. "Not if he just now tried to have you killed."

Isogai gulped. It had been hard enough to tell Meg about his parentage, but these people? He didn't know them at all. Kaiba was practically a celebrity, Jumin was the half-brother he'd planned on never meeting, and his chief assistant about whom he knew nothing. He had no evidence that he could trust these people.

"Isogai." Jaehee managed to work in a twinge of concern in her calm, practical voice. "If he tried to kill you once, he'll try again."

"That's right." Kaiba commandeered the conversation once more, his piercing blue eyes making it difficult for Isogai to look away. "If you want us to let you out and let you go on your way, I'm happy to oblige, but if you tell us what's going on, we can help you."

Jumin muttered in Korean, " **Not that there's any _reason_ to help him, aside from your own caprice**." He shot a glare at Kaiba, who met his gaze sternly.

" **He's just a kid. You should be more bothered by the fact that your father attempted to kill him than anything else right now**."

" **Maybe I would be if this hadn't happened before**."

" **Did he ever go after a minor before, though**?"

Jumin looked out the window again, slipping an earbud into his ear and pushing the play button on his phone, propping his elbow on the door, and resting his chin in his hand. Isogai, meanwhile, was still puzzling through the pros and cons of telling these new acquaintances the truth.

" **Jaehee, don't you see it**?" Kaiba said softly, looking at the two men sitting across from them. Jaehee looked up from her phone to glance at Jumin, then Isogai, then look at Kaiba in confusion.

" **See what**?" Jaehee leaned to the side a little, closer to the brunette who leaned in a little too.

" **Just look at them both, then tell me what you see**." Kaiba's voice was quiet, enough so that Jumin didn't hear him, for his focus was fixed on something else entirely. Jaehee studied Isogai's confused face, the curve of his jaw, the shape of his eyes, the shade of his skin. She looked at the width of his shoulders, the color of his hair, the shape of his lips. Then she looked at her employer and did the same, her eyes beginning to widen as realization slowly crept over her.

Yes, Isogai's skin was slightly darker than Jumin's, but they both sported metallic eyes: Jumin's were silver and Isogai's were gold. Their hair was the same color, and looked to be of the same texture, though it was styled differently. Their faces were the same shape, their shoulders of proportional width to their bodies, even their builds were the same.

" **You don't think**..." Jaehee didn't dare say it aloud.

" **Do you remember at the restaurant when I said he was here for blackmail**?"

" **Yes**."

" **That's why**." Kaiba straightened up, making eye contact with Isogai. " You two are brothers, aren't you?"


	4. My Big Brother Is My Best Friend

Jumin started, staring at his lover in shock before looking down at Isogai as he waited for the teen to deny it. Isogai looked back at Jumin, feeling acutely uncomfortable. This had never been a part of his plan for his trip to Korea. He'd never planned to meet his half-brother at all. They stared at each other in intense silence until Isogai finally broke it.

"I didn't come here to cause any trouble."

"Then why _are_ you here?" Jumin challenged bitterly, eyes narrowed.

"I just need a little financial help," Isogai confessed, forcing back an embarrassed blush. He knew that financial difficulties were things that none of these people had ever had to deal with, so they couldn't possibly understand, but it was the truth. "Just for the next few years until I finish high school and can at least get started on college." He looked to Jaehee and Kaiba now, sensing them to be his immediate allies. "I'm not asking for a lot, and I'm not asking for it to be given to me forever. Just enough to cover living expenses so that I can stay in school."

"And why aren't your parents paying for these things?" Kaiba's eyes were unreadable ice, but Jaehee's expression betrayed her sympathy for him.

"My dad died when I was little," he explained, and swallowed past the lump in his throat before adding, "My mom died a month ago. Right before then, she told me about... Chairman Han, and told me to ask him for help. I have little siblings to take care of, and I'm only sixteen. I'm already working two jobs for the summer, and I work during the school year too, even though it's not technically permitted. I don't know how I'm going to make enough to pay for tuition and utilities and everything else when winter comes. I don't see why it's unfair of me to ask my... my biological father to help support me when I'm the only one supporting my family right now. I certainly don't think it warrants him trying to kill me."

The silence that followed his monologue was tense, and Isogai felt a bit of relief when the limo came to a gradual halt.

" **This is your stop, Ms. Kang** ," Driver Kim announced from the front of the car, Jaehee's expression temporarily one of disappointment.

"That's too bad, this was starting to get better than Zen's soap opera." Jaehee opened her clutch purse and pulled out a card, handing it to Isogai, who accepted it gratefully. It was her business card, a useful thing only if he were to ever be returning to Seoul. "If these two start acting unreasonable, or they simply start to misbehave, give me a call." She winked at him and added in a conspiratorial whisper, "They're really just children, so don't let them intimidate you."

"Thank you." Isogai felt a bit relieved to know that he had her support, and he somewhat wished that she wouldn't leave him alone with the two executives. She told him not to be, but he couldn't _help_ but feel intimidated as Jumin moved away from him to sit across the car next to Kaiba, leaning against his side.

" **Does he have to come home with us**?" Jumin muttered tiredly as he relaxed a little against Kaiba.

" **Yes**." Kaiba's tone was stern; he clearly wasn't in the mood to argue about this. " **Do you want to take the risk that he dies because we let him go**?"

" **What makes you so sure those men were going to kill him**?" Jumin countered, still not entirely convinced that was the situation to begin with.

" **Their guns had silencers**." Kaiba gave him a serious, sidelong glance. " **Unless they were planning to kill someone, there was no reason for those men to have silencers**."

Jumin grunted in annoyance; the last thing he wanted was to associate with this kid who'd waltzed into his life out of the blue, claiming to be his half-brother, but Seto had a valid point. If Isogai was in danger, then they couldn't just let him leave on his own, because if he was attacked by the Chairman's henchmen, it would be their fault.

Damn his conscience.

* * *

Once they reached Jumin's apartment, they sat down for a conversation in the kitchen. It quickly devolved into an argument—spoken in Korean only, to shield Isogai from the conflict—between Jumin an Seto regarding whether they should intervene on Isogai's behalf with Chairman Han—or whether they should be getting involved with this student at all.

" **He's just a kid, Jumin** ," Seto snapped, casting his lover a glare.

" **You were running a company when you were his age**."

" **And now he's running a _family_. Don't you think he deserves a little help with that**?"

" **How do you plan on getting involved? If you go talk to my father, he'll wonder why you're getting involved at all**."

" **I don't need to talk to him directly in order to get what I want**." Kaiba crossed his arms and leaned back against the counter, looking characteristically confident.

" **You know what, it doesn't matter**." Jumin threw his hands up in the air as he turned and walked towards his room. " **It doesn't matter! You do what you want while I get some sleep**."

" **I'll send him home soon, Jumin** ," Kaiba called after him. " **When I come back, you and I are going to talk**." Then he turned his gaze back to Isogai. "Show me the contract you gave him."

"I don't have a paper copy on me right now, but I have a digital one."

"That's good enough for me."

Seto loaded the document on his laptop and skimmed it, Isogai tense as he waited for his response. As he watched those deep blue eyes flicking across the screen, Isogai had a feeling that he wasn't just skimming, but speed-reading.

"It looks fair enough to me," he said simply as he closed the document and ejected the USB. "I want you to set up a meeting with someone when you get back to Japan." He slid his laptop into its bag and opened a side pocket, withdrawing his hand with a business card between his fingers. "I'll tell him to expect your call. KaibaCorp is about to launch a new scholarship for underprivileged teens that you may be eligible for."

Isogai took the business card with a sense of surprised gratitude. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." Kaiba stood and stretched his arms. "Thank me when you qualify. I'm going to call you a car, here's my number"—he paused to jot down his cell phone number on the back of his business card and hand it to Isogai—"let me know that you get home safely."

"Thank you..." Isogai looked down at the business card, then back at the brunette. "Why are you—"

"Come on."

Kaiba was grabbing his coat and putting his shoes back on, so Isogai followed suit. It wasn't until they were in the elevator that Kaiba answered the question Isogai hadn't asked.

"Please forgive Jumin for his attitude," he began. "An old friend of his committed suicide a few months ago, and he's still grieving."

Isogai instantly felt much better about how this encounter with his half-brother had gone. "I'm sorry to hear that. Please give him my condolences."

"If he weren't coping with that right now, I'm sure he would have been more agreeable."

"I understand. Grief changes everything." He hesitated, licked his lips, and asked what he'd wanted to ask earlier. "Why are you helping me?"

Kaiba turned his head to look down at Isogai for a moment before returning his gaze to the closed elevator doors. "You remind me of myself when I was your age."

"Really?" Isogai made a mental note to do research with Ritsu later on Seto Kaiba.

"A little." Kaiba cast a sidelong glance at him, lips slightly curved into a bemused smiled. "Just a little."

"How soon will I hear back about the scholarship?"

"Within a month of the interview. You'll have to ask him for a specific date."

The elevator reached its destination, the doors opened, and they exited, Isogai a stride behind Kaiba.

"Good luck. We'll be in touch," were the last words Isogai heard before the door of the taxi closed.

* * *

" **I don't know if this will comfort you, but, I always knew this was going to be my last trip. I wanted to go on my last trip and take photos with these eyes...** "

Jumin clenched the sheets in his fingers as he stared up out the window at the city's skyline, the lights of Seoul the only light he could see.

" **You and I both know that I'm going to turn fully blind soon, and when that happens, I'll have nothing left to live for. I'm so sorry that this is how things turned out. I would do anything to turn things back to how they were. If only the members of the RFA could be happy and bright as they were before... I'm serious. I would do anything. But, it's impossible to turn back time, and I can't undo what's already been done. I'm so sorry... I know I haven't made this easy on you, but I had to tell someone. For what it's worth, Jaehee told me about your relationship with Mr. Kaiba, and I'm happy for you. I think you two suit each other very well. Please be safe and happy. And... please take good care of the RFA members. I love everyone in the RFA. I know you try hard to be logical, but there's an emotional side deep inside of you. Jaehee seems to be on top of everything, but she's anxious on the inside. Yoosung seems like an ordinary college student, but he has fire in his heart. Luciel has a complicated life. And Zen... has wounds from his family, and I think you'll be able to heal everyone. At one point, I thought that I'd be able to heal everyone in the RFA, but, I think it's safe to call that arrogance now. Jumin... please take good care of the RFA. And, please take care of yourself. Goodbye, Jumin, and thank you**."

Jumin punched the play button on his phone with his thumb, restarting that precious voicemail from six months ago.

He already knew the whole monologue by heart. He didn't need to hear it anymore to know what was said. He listened to it to hear the anguish in his best friend's voice. The way it cracked on his own name, the way he choked up and sighed and forced the words to continue no matter how upset he was.

 _If you were so upset about leaving us, then why did you go?_

Jumin sighed and closed his eyes, but his eyelids didn't seem to want to stay sealed, so he opened them again and stared at the city. When he heard his bedroom door open and close, he didn't acknowledge the other man's presence.

"Are you angry with me, Jumin?"

He didn't answer, not as Kaiba flicked on the closet light and undressed behind him, changing into a set of silken sleepwear, not when the light turned off and he heard the mattress give under the other's weight as he seated himself on the other side of the bed.

"I keep telling you to stop listening to that." Kaiba plucked the earbuds by the cord, tugging them away from Jumin, who scowled in his direction, but didn't move from his spot. "You're never going to move on that way."

"I don't want to move on." Jumin glared out the window as Kaiba took his phone away from him and set it on the night-stand, plugging it in to charge.

"Moving on doesn't mean you forget him." Kaiba pressed his lips to Jumin's forehead in a comforting gesture. "It just means that you have closure."

Jumin didn't respond verbally, but his scowl softened a bit with sadness. "In his last message, V said that he thought I could heal everyone in the RFA," he confessed quietly. He hadn't let Seto listen to the message, and hadn't told him before what it contained. The brunette remained silent, allowing Jumin to work through his thoughts."I know that I am capable of many things, and that my resources make me doubly so, but I fail to comprehend how I can heal the others when I myself cannot heal from the wounds he's left me with."

"I think V believed in your own strength," Seto mused after a minute of silence. "I think he believed in your ability to heal and in your ability to overcome your own grief for the sake of helping others. I think he recognized your capacity for selflessness, which others tend to underestimate."

Jumin inhaled slowly, processing those words. Finally, he rolled over to face Seto, letting those long fingers drag through his hair and comb his bangs back away from his face before he leaned in for a small kiss.

"I apologize for my attitude this evening. It was rather unprofessional and impolite of me to behave the way I did."

"You're forgiven, Jumin." Kaiba pressed another kiss to Jumin's cheek as he shifted closer to him on the bed. "You had a difficult day today, but tomorrow we'll have a fresh start."

"Isogai... what is your impression of him?"

"He seems sincere and well-meaning. I believe that he's not here to take advantage of you or your father, he's just a diligent young man trying to overcome his circumstances. I can respect that. I'm going to run a full background check on him to learn all that I can, for both of our sakes. Perhaps his situation is easily remedied, and it will be resolved quickly. I am curious, though, when you plan to interact with him again."

"I don't plan to, unless circumstances necessitate it."

"He's your brother, Jumin. A brother is a precious thing to waste, especially if he turns out to be as good as he seems on the surface."

Jumin didn't respond at first, just watched as Seto ran his fingertips over each inch of Jumin's hands that ached slightly from the amount of typing he'd done at work today. He knew that Seto's only living family member was his younger brother and that the two siblings were close, closer than most. They had a special bond; was Seto wishing for him to develop the same kind of relationship with Isogai?

"If he is as good as you think him to be, to you believe that it would benefit me to develop an... amiable relationship with him?"

"I think it would be mutually beneficial," Seto explained. "You need more close companions than just myself and the members of the RFA. Besides that, I believe that you would be a good influence on him. He could learn to emulate your work ethic by observing your techniques for efficiency and time management. You could help him grow to be a successful provider for his younger siblings, and in turn, positively impact the others he interacts with in his life."

"Wouldn't he be more of a burden than a benefit?" Jumin inquired bluntly.

"I believe not. Life has taught me, Jumin, that not all benefits can be quantified or measured on an objective scale. Trust me when I say that he will be a good influence on you."

"You're planning something, Seto Kaiba." Jumin pressed their foreheads together, smirking slightly.

"You're not wrong." Seto smirked back.


End file.
